A cup of coffee accompanies a late night study session. (Photo by Monye Pitt)

Senior Ryan Stekle wakes up at around 5:00AM every morning. The idea of thinking coherently is an impossibility before his first cup of coffee.

Ryan’s case is not unique. Walk through the halls of CHS and you will find yourself surrounded by a sea of students carrying Starbucks containers, sodas, thermoses of tea and coffee and the occasional energy drink.

The seeming “need” to consume caffeine is an unfortunate reality of high school life.
As the difficulty of classes intensifies, time suddenly becomes a precious commodity.

Many high schoolers are hit with a new reality: there simply are not enough hours in the day. They suddenly find that, in order to find the time to finish everything, they must stay up into the early hours of the morning. For some students these late nights are a regular occurrence.

The obvious solution? Caffeine. Lots and lots of caffeine.

Without the help of caffeinated drinks, Stekle says, “I might as well be a zombie walking.”

Senior Abbie Kohmetscher also finds that it’s difficult to get through the day without caffeine. “I spend a lot of nights up very late. I’m a bit of an insomniac so coffee’s a nice way to get through the day.”

However, Liz Coorey, a dietitian at St. Alexius Hospital, warns that consumption of high levels of caffeine can be detrimental – especially for high school students.

“You can feel side effects like anxiety and insomnia which means you find it hard to sleep. I think that plays an important part when you’re talking about teenagers, because if you’re drinking caffeine in the evening and you’re already staying up late and you’re already sleep deprived, you’re going to end up not sleeping well because of the caffeine.”

“Other negatives include some speculation that caffeine can affect the way we absorb calcium. We might lose more calcium in our urine when we drink caffeine in high doses so what that means is higher risk for fractures.”

Additionally, Corey says that black teas and coffees contain high levels of compounds known as tannins. “Tannins, when you drink them at the same time as something with iron, will result in less iron absorption.”

This decreased iron absorption could potentially pose problems for those involved in high-intensity sports, especially female athletes.

Corey advises, “Adequate sleep and eating a balanced diet is really the best way to get natural energy other than caffeine. Fruits and veggies, five meals throughout the day and snacking when you need to.”

And, in fact, some students have found that it is possible to get through the day without caffeine. Junior Adam Garrett and his brothers have managed to balance difficult classes, sports and playing instruments all without the help of coffees, teas or energy drinks.

Instead of depending upon caffeine, Garrett focuses on finishing his homework early enough to get an adequate amount of sleep.

“I don’t really spend that much time on social networking sites or gaming. When I get home, I practice viola, start my homework, eat dinner, finish my homework and then do something to relax. But then I go to bed pretty much right after that.”

Ultimately, the key to caffeine consumption is moderation. Corey admits, “ A lot of research shows tea or coffee in moderate amounts, around a cup a day, have antioxidants that can actually be really good for your health.”